Apple Television Hype May Be Misplaced

For a long time now there has been heavy speculation that Apple may be getting into the HDTV market. Reports were rampant after the death of Apple CEO Steve Jobs that he had left behind plans for an Apple HDTV that would blow every other competitor out of the water. Since then Apple fanboys have been creating their own concepts of Apple’s rumored television. Imagine Siri in your television, and the power of Apple TV in every household. A perfectly sleek and sexy beveled flat screen that would bring around a new world of home entertainment, built around their wildly successful iOS. Recently more speculation has come to surface.

Reports of Apple building a super high bandwidth capable store in San Francisco quickly prompted rumors that its intended purpose was to show of the capabilities of an Apple television. The store was to be connected to PAIX, the Palo Alto Internet Exchange, one of the most powerful Internet bases around.

Apple HDTV Concept

With the release of Lion and then Mountain Lion, we are seeing Apple take steps towards total integration among devices using their iOS system. The iPad looks more like the Mac and the Mac looks more like the iPad. Hopefully what we would see with an Apple Television, is basically a huge version of the iPad, with incredible streaming capabilities.

But as rumors abound, the naysayers spring up. Recently ex-Apple CEO John Sculley told Business Week, “People don’t realize how huge this is. Microsoft wanted the living room, Sony wanted the living room, and so far both have failed.” He called the television market “Apple’s game to lose.” But never doubt; where others have failed Apple succeeded. Microsoft wanted a computer in every office around the world, and then Apple put one in every living room, lap, and bedroom. What Xerox Park saw as a waste of time in their personal PC, Apple saw as profit and a new world of electronics.

The biggest obstacle right now is the rumored purpose of the Apple Television. Apple would intend to bridge the worlds of live streaming and subscriber service. Where Hulu allows streaming of popular television shows, and Netflix brings movies to your lap, Apple would combine the two and create an on demand service that would encompass every kind of media available right now. Already Hulu and Netflix apps are available on iOS devices. According to Apple execs, attaining the rights to all this media from media corporate giants has been and will continue to be a challenge. But as always, leave it to Apple to overcome. If the Apple HDTV does happen, it won’t be for a while, but like with every product they’ve released in recent years, when it does happen it won’t be topped.